The U.S. extended border restrictions with Mexico and Canada while Beijing raised its COVID-19 threat level and closed its schools Tuesday, as global leaders tried not to squander hard-won gains against the coronavirus.
Acting Homeland Security Chad F. Wolf said North American crossings will remain closed to all but essential travel for another 30 days, to July 21.
“Based on the success of the existing restrictions and the emergence of additional global COVID-19 hot spots, the department will continue to limit nonessential travel at our land ports of entry with Canada and Mexico,” Mr. Wolf said. “This extension protects Americans while keeping essential trade and travel flowing as we reopen the American economy.”
The agency said Canada and Mexico supported the extension.
“This is an important decision that will keep Canadians and Americans safe,” Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau tweeted.
The number of known COVID-19 cases exceeded 8 million worldwide Tuesday. Parts of Europe, Asia and North America are trying to move beyond the worst of the pandemic but are finding the pathogen is difficult to stamp out completely.
SEE ALSO: Beijing raises threat COVID-19 level, closes schools
In good news, British researchers said a low-cost inflammatory drug, dexamethasone, appeared to improve survival rates among COVID-19 patients.
Researchers at the University of Oxford said the drug reduced deaths by one-third among patients on ventilators and by one-fifth among those receiving oxygen in a trial involving 6,000 patients.
“Dexamethasone is the first drug to be shown to improve survival in COVID-19. This is an extremely welcome result,” said Peter Horby, professor of emerging infectious diseases at Oxford. “The survival benefit is clear and large in those patients who are sick enough to require oxygen treatment, so dexamethasone should now become [the] standard of care in these patients. Dexamethasone is inexpensive, on the shelf, and can be used immediately to save lives worldwide.”
Countries are still worried about the virus spreading out of control, however.
Beijing is locking down dozens of neighborhoods because of fears of a “second wave” in the Chinese capital. Officials have detected more than 100 cases since a flare-up at the Xinfadi food market last week.
Taxis are banned from leaving the capital, and northeastern cities such as Harbin are requiring visitors from Beijing to go into quarantine so they can be tested for the coronavirus. Northeastern provinces say cases have been linked to the capital-city cluster.
The communist government is desperately trying to keep its capital from becoming a hot spot after it took draconian measures to stamp out the disease, which broke out in the central city of Wuhan in December.
Since then, the U.S. has recorded 2.1 million COVID-19 cases and more than 116,000 deaths.
Hospitalizations and reported infections are rising in Florida, Texas and Arizona as those Sun Belt states reopen from stay-at-home measures. Hospitals haven’t been overrun, but officials are monitoring intensive care units.
“There is no reason right now to be alarmed,” said Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican.
Mr. Abbott reported a record high of 2,622 cases in Texas on Tuesday. He said prisons and assisted living facilities account for batches of cases that can be controlled by sending resources to those sites.
Mr. Abbott said some counties reported spikes in COVID-19 cases among young people who went to bars, so he directed the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission to crack down on places flouting public safety rules.
The governor said residents can reduce the spread of the coronavirus by staying home when they are able to and wearing masks if they go out in public.
“We do not have to choose between either returning to jobs or protecting health care,” Mr. Abbott said. “We do have the tools and strategies in place where we can achieve both of those ends. Jobs can be maintained without jeopardizing the health of a community if everyone follows the safe strategies to prevent the spread of COVID-19.”
Arizona, meanwhile, reported 2,392 cases Tuesday as part of a broader June surge.
“Today we’re reporting a record number of #COVID19 cases. Please do your part to help slow the spread,” the state’s health department tweeted alongside reminders to wear masks, maintain social distancing and wash hands.
On the East Coast, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat, said Tuesday that he will allow hospitals to accept visitors at their discretion. His state is showing positive trends and slowly reopening after a hard hit early in the pandemic.
Mr. Cuomo said the U.S. Open tennis tournament will begin Aug. 31 in Queens, though without fans. “But we can watch it on TV, and I’ll take that,” he said.
Vice President Mike Pence, touring Winnebago Industries in Iowa, focused on the broad progress the U.S. has made since the start of the pandemic.
He said every American patient who needed a ventilator was able to get one and that transmission had slowed enough to kick-start reopening plans in every state.
“We slowed the spread, we flattened the curve, we saved lives, and that’s why we’re opening up America again,” Mr. Pence said. “You did it.”
• Tom Howell Jr. can be reached at thowell@washingtontimes.com.
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